


The Strongest There Is (A Bruce | Hulk-Centric Endgame Fix-It)

by ThisStrangeObsession



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Bruce/Hulk-centric Fix It, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Canon-Typical Violence, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Professor Hulk is great but that character development can't happen off-screen, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-27
Updated: 2019-07-29
Packaged: 2020-03-20 04:45:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18985558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisStrangeObsession/pseuds/ThisStrangeObsession
Summary: SPOILERS FOR AVENGERS: ENDGAME"It's like I was made for this."Five years after Thanos snapped half the universe out of existence, Natasha recruits a conflicted Bruce Banner for The Avengers' last chance to regain what they've lost. But with The Hulk MIA and the mission to retrieve the Infinity Stones from the past almost impossible, it'll take more than Bruce's genius to win against Thanos - and the price to unleash the monster may destroy them both.





	1. Chapter 1

Ever since the Vanishing, Harvard had become a fortress. Watch towers had been built around the perimeter, and soldiers patrolled the former campus day and night, guarding one of the world’s last functioning scientific research facilities. Besides the Avengers compound, it was the last place the doctor would want to be – and in the end, the only place he could go.

Natasha found him in his laboratory at 3 AM, hunched over a microscope in semi-darkness with one hand on the slide and the other reaching for a mug of strong Indian tea. Sleeves of his wrinkled mauve dress shirt rolled up. Glasses splayed on an open notebook filled with chemical formulas. Shoulders tense as he glanced out the window behind him, waiting for the marching soldiers to pass by – and prepared for the worst if they didn’t.

Same old Bruce.

“For a man who’s supposed to be avoiding stress, you picked a hell of a place to settle,” she said from the doorway.

“Avoiding stress isn’t the secret,” he replied, setting down his mug as he turned.

Natasha stepped into the room. “Then what is it?”

Bruce shook his head and looked away. “Avoiding you.”

“That smarts,” she said, folding her arms.

“The last time we really talked, you kissed me and pushed me into a hundred-foot-deep crater, so forgive me for being a little standoffish.”

“I’m sorry,” Natasha said.

“I don’t think you are. I think you knew exactly what you were doing, Agent Romanoff.” Bruce rounded the laboratory table, putting distance between them. “Ever since my accident, the military saw me as a threat. SHIELD saw me as a weapon. But then I met you, and I thought maybe, just maybe, I’d finally found someone who saw me as a man. I was wrong. You used me, Natasha.”

“You’re right. I did,” she replied. “And if I had the chance to go back to that moment, I’d do it all over again, because the world depended on it. Just like it depends on you now.”

Bruce gave an incredulous chuckle, shaking his head. “You know, after Sokovia, I spent two years trapped in my own mind. When I finally woke up, the first thing I heard was your voice.”

“The Quinjet transmission?”

Bruce nodded. “You brought me back, Natasha. For a while, I wondered how I could have been gone so long. But seeing you now, I’ve realized why. I didn’t come back because I didn’t _want_ to. It was easier to be the monster than the man you betrayed.”

“I needed you, Bruce,” Natasha said, following him around the table, but stopped when he retreated.

“No. You wanted me. You needed _him._ ”

“I needed both of you, and so did the team. We still do.”

“What team?”

Natasha shrugged. “Whoever’s left.”

“Sorry to disappoint, but if you haven’t noticed, me and the Other Guy aren’t exactly on speaking terms,” Bruce said. “I haven’t had a Code Green in five years. And you know what? I’ve never been happier.”

“What makes you happy?” she asked.

“Helping people. Wherever I can.” He turned his back to her, donning his glasses as he poured over his notes. “With half the world gone, there’s a lot of work unfinished. Someone has to pick up where they left off.”

“What if you didn’t have to? What if we had a chance to—?”

“To do what, Natasha?” Bruce snapped his notebook shut. “It’s over. Thanos is dead.”

Natasha looked to his clenched fist on the table. “Then why are both of you still hiding?”

“I’m not hiding.” He opened his hand and lay it on the microscope, brushing her aside to stand before it. “I’m working.”

“And the Other Guy?”

Bruce paused. Slowly, he took off his glasses and turned to her. “What are you asking us to do?”

Natasha smiled. “Ask Tony.”


	2. Chapter 2

NEW YORK CITY, 2012

They started at the beginning. The Battle of Manhattan was officially underway, each original Avenger in place not five blocks from the alley where Tony, Steve, Scott, and Bruce appeared. The first three had the narrowest window of time, so proximity to Stark Tower was paramount, and this was the closest safe distance – they hoped, anyway.

“All right, we all have our assignments. Two stones uptown, one stone down. Stay low. Keep an eye on the clock—”

Steve’s command halted as a familiar roar echoed, drawing closer. In the street, a Chitauri soldier turned just in time to be crushed by a car, wielded by none other than Hulk. The Chitauri’s comrades fled, and Hulk, not content to merely smash the alien into pieces, jumped up and down on the wrecked vehicle atop it until the mass of metal had been reduced to scrap. With another terrifying roar, he leapt onward, leaving the future Avengers speechless for a long moment.

“Yeah,” Tony said, looking to Bruce, who stood dumbstruck. “Better stay out of your way, big guy.”

*****

Twenty minutes of skulking through alleyways later, Bruce emerged from the rooftop access of the Sanctum Santorum – and jumped aside as a Chitauri corpse crashed into the wall beside him. Across the roof, the Ancient One fought the creatures off with their magic, alien battle cries piercing the air as the invaders fell.

“Considering the circumstances, I can forgive your breaking and entering,” the Ancient One said, a wave of their enchanted hand crashing two Chitauri aircraft into each other, “but in your present condition, you may want to stay inside, Dr. Banner.”

“You know who I am?” he asked, ducking back into the doorway.

“Better, I think, than you know yourself at the moment.” The Ancient One blasted the last Chitauri off the ledge and turned, magic dissipating. “All clear.”

Bruce stepped out of his haven. “I’m looking for Doctor Strange.”

“You’re about five years too early,” the Ancient One said, eying him with curiosity. “What do you want from him?”

Bruce’s eyes narrowed in on the necklace holding the Time Stone. “That, actually.”

“Ah,” they said, glancing at the amulet. “I’m afraid not.”

“I need that stone, and I can’t afford to take no for an answer,” Bruce said, walking toward them. “If you know who I am, you know what I can do. I don’t want to hurt you, but if I have to bring out the Other Guy—”

“There’s no need for that.” They stepped forward, one hand on the amulet. “Allow me.”

The Ancient One struck Bruce’s chest, forcing out not one astral form, but two, transparent and floating weightlessly. Bruce looked down to see his own unconscious body beside him – and glanced up to find Hulk staring back.

“What – what did you—?”

Hulk’s roar cut Bruce off as he spun toward the Ancient One, reaching for the amulet – but his fist passed harmlessly through them. Both souls looked at the Ancient One with twin expressions of shock, and the Ancient One smiled.

“Let’s start over, shall we?”

*****

Bruce followed the Ancient One to the edge of the rooftop, Hulk trailing behind, still grimacing at his useless fist. In the distance, the Battle of Manhattan raged on.

“Please—” Bruce began.

“I’m sorry. I can’t help you, Bruce. If I give up the Time Stone to save your timeline, I’m dooming my own.”

“I don’t understand.”

With a wave of the Ancient One’s hand, three golden currents flowed through the air – one for each timeline. Their corresponding Infinity Stones spun around the tendrils of otherworldly matter, and the Ancient One plucked the Time Stone from her own.

“Five years from now, a great threat will arise, and without the Time Stone to defend us, our world will be lost before this Thanos even arrives. The same will be true of every stone, in every timeline you’ve created. Stealing even one would be catastrophic.”

Hulk reached out and captured the illusionary Stones in his fist. The timestreams broke off, turning black, and Hulk opened his hand. Bruce took the Time Stone projection from him.

“We won’t steal them. We’ll borrow them. Once we’re done, we can return each Stone to its own timeline, at the moment it was taken. That way, chronologically—” He placed the Time Stone back in its timestream “—they never left.”

The timestream shone gold again, and as Hulk tossed the other Stones back into the current, each reality mended.

“Assuming you survive. If this Thanos is really as powerful as you say, the odds are overwhelmingly against you. I only hope that my timeline will have better luck.”

“I will survive. We will,” Bruce said. “I promise.”

The Ancient One shook their head. “I cannot risk my reality on a promise. It is the duty of the Sorcerer Supreme to protect the Time Stone.”

“Then why did Strange give it away?”

The Ancient One paused, uncertain. “What?”

“He gave the Stone to Thanos.”

“To save himself?”

“No.”

The Ancient One glanced at the chaos in the distance, thoughtful. “To save another?”

“Yes.”

With a flick of their wrist, the Ancient One brought Bruce’s body forward, absorbing both souls as it passed through them, and Bruce became corporeal once more. The Ancient One unlocked the amulet, taking the Time Stone from within and offering it to Bruce.

“Thank you,” he said, capturing it in a small metal case.

“Both our realities are in your hands now,” the Ancient One said. “And it will take both of you to save them.”


	3. Chapter 3

They’d done it.

The Avengers flashed forward to the platform in 2023, uniforms retracting into civilian clothes. It had been hours, milliseconds, a lifetime ago since they had left – this moment was the beginning, and the end. But their journey wasn’t over yet.

“Did we get them all?” Steve asked.

Thor, Bruce, and Rhodey held out their hands, revealing their respective stones. Tony and Steve set down their cases. Finally, Clint unclenched his fist, the Soul Stone in his upturned palm. 

Steve breathed a sigh of relief. “We did it.”

All the stones were there. But something was still missing.

Bruce looked to the gap across the circle. “Clint, where’s Nat?”

Silence. The pain in Clint’s tear-filled eyes as he looked at the stone in his hand, the aching emptiness of the place Natasha should have been – they were the answer.

No one spoke. No one needed to. They bowed their heads as the weight of grief descended, remembering a leader, a hero, a friend. To some, she was more. To a few, she was family.

And she was gone.

On the other side of the platform, Bruce doubled over, heaving as his fists clenched against his knees.

“Bruce? You okay?” Tony asked.

Suddenly, Bruce jerked upright, his pained face turned toward the ceiling. Above the collar of his shirt, a tendril of green snaked up his throat. Everyone backed up.

“Now’s not the time, big guy,” Tony said. “You’ve gotta stay—”

“Get back!” The voice wasn’t Bruce’s, but nor was it Hulk’s – an odd, reverberating hybrid. He was too far gone.

The Avengers heeded his warning, evacuating the platform and getting behind Thor as Bruce’s shirt burst open, his body contorting into a monstrous green form. Even for those who had known him best, it had been at least five years since anyone had seen the Hulk – all they knew for certain was that he was sure to be angry.

The giant looked skyward, arms outstretched as he let out a roar of grief and rage, the transformation complete. From their positions beneath the platform, no one could see his face, but they did see the cases with the scepter and Tesseract in front of him. If Hulk got hold of them—

Tony tapped his chest, activating his armor, and carefully climbed the platform steps.

“Hey, Big Green. It’s me, Tin Man. It’s been a spell, hasn’t it? Listen, we’re all friends here. No need to smash anything.” Tony slowly reached for the cases. “I’m just gonna get these out of your way—”

Hulk’s arm shot out, and Tony tumbled backward to dodge an attack. Instead, the green fist closed around the case containing the Mind Stone scepter, and held it out to Tony. The giant’s face was remarkably calm, tears still gleaming in his alert, intelligent eyes – Bruce’s eyes.

“Bruce?” Tony asked, taking the case.

“Yes… and no,” he answered, the Hulk’s resonance combined with Banner’s intonation. He shook his head, staring at his giant green hand. “I’m… both.”

One by one, the team gathered around. Bruce/Hulk looked to Thor, to Cap, and finally, to Clint. 

In the archer’s hand, the Soul Stone gleamed amber, proof of Natasha’s sacrifice.

The Black Widow’s ledger had been wiped clean.

*****

In the area of the compound where Natasha had continued their work the past five years, the original Avengers mourned in silence around her favorite desk. Save for a pair of ballet shoes, the chair behind it sat empty.

“Did she have family?” Thor finally asked, the question directed at Clint.

“Yeah,” Steve said, leaning against a chair. “Us.”

“Why are we acting like she’s dead?” Tony circled the center of the room. “We have the time devices, we can get her back—”

“It can’t be undone.”

They all looked to Clint. He shook his head, repeating himself. “It can’t.”

“What do you mean, it can’t be done?” Tony asked. “You go back there, you find her, you bring her here before—”

“A soul for a soul. That’s what the guy said.”

“Who?” Thor asked.

“The floating red guy with the stone! We give it up, maybe we get her back, but then all of this was for nothing!” Clint yelled. He set an open case with the Soul Stone on the desk, his voice barely a whisper as he pointed at Tony. “Don’t you dare take this from her.”

In the shadowy corner of the room, Bruce/Hulk spoke up. “We have to make it worth it.”

Steve nodded, looking to the stone.

“We will.”

*****

In the adjacent area of the compound, the full team watched as Tony interfaced remotely with the Iron Gauntlet, placing each stone.

Rhodey turned to the green giant by his side. “So, what do we call you now? Bruce Hulk? Hulk Banner? Doctor Hulk? That’s got a nice ring to it.”

The gauntlet accepted the glowing gems, complete.

“It’s finished,” Tony said, and the glass case retracted, his work on full display.

Scott glanced around at the others, all staring at the gauntlet. “So, who’s gonna snap?”

“Me.” Thor stepped forward, setting Mjölnir on a laboratory table. “I’ll do it.”

“We haven’t decided that yet,” Steve said.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t see anyone else volunteering,” Thor said, and pointed at himself. “Remember who killed Thanos? If anyone can match a titan, it’s a god.”

“But not a king. What about your people? New Asgard?”

Thor cringed with self-revulsion. “I wasn’t a king – I was a coward. But I can still protect my people.”

“That doesn’t mean you have to—”

“But I do.” He was crying now, beating his fist against his palm. “I have to do something good, something right. I have to be better, be—”

He stopped and took a deep breath, holding back a sob. “Worthy.”

“You are.” Steve took his hand, placing it on Mjölnir. “So be there. For them.”

“I’ll do it.” Everyone looked to the gentle giant in the corner. “The radiation is mostly gamma. It’s like… I was made for this.”

Clint shook his head. “You saw what the stones did to Thanos, you know how strong he was.”

Bruce/Hulk approached the gauntlet, standing before it with a calm, resigned confidence. His green fingers curled into a fist.

“I’m the strongest there is.”


End file.
